Inflatable products, such as inflatable air mattresses and the like typically include an air pump for inflation and, in some cases, deflation of an inflatable body. Some inflatable products also include a socket in the inflatable body for receiving or storing the pump. Such designs are suitable for some purposes. However, the present invention avoids certain drawbacks of such prior designs and incorporates substantial improvements.
The inflatable product of the present invention includes an inflatable body, such as an air mattress, which includes a flexible body wall. A rigid socket is disposed in the body wall and extends into an interior volume of the inflatable body.
The socket includes a socket opening which may be flush with the body wall. The socket also includes side walls aligned substantially perpendicular to the socket opening. In addition, the socket includes an innermost end wall aligned substantially parallel to the socket opening.
The socket includes a socket outlet located on the end wall, which socket outlet is in fluid communication with an interior volume of the inflatable body. A one-way valve is disposed over the socket outlet to permit ingress of air into the interior volume of the inflatable body through the socket outlet and to prevent egress of air out the socket outlet. The inflatable product preferably includes a user-operable deflation valve which is located on the body wall.
The socket forms a recess in which an air pump is slidably disposed. The pump has a retracted position, an extended position and intermediate positions wherein the pump is intermediate the retracted and extended positions. The pump includes a handle on an outward face suitable to permit a user to grasp and pull the pump from the retracted position to the extended position.
The pump is substantially entirely within the socket when in the retracted position and is substantially entirely outside the socket when in the extended position. The pump includes a pump outlet on an inward face which is in fluid communication with an interior of the socket when the pump is in the extended position, or in an intermediate position.
The socket opening is substantially sealed by the pump to prevent pressurized air injected into the interior of the socket by the pump from escaping. The pump includes an air intake opening which is in fluid communication with ambient air outside the inflatable body when said pump is in the extended or intermediate positions. The pump includes a fan in fluid communication with the air intake and pump outlet whereby the fan is operable to force pressurized air into the interior of the socket to inflate the inflatable body. The fan is electrically connected to a power source in series with a switch, which switch is operable to activate the fan when in a closed (on) position. The switch is biased into an open (off) position by a resilient member, such as a spring, or the like, when the pump is in a deactivated position. The switch is in the closed position when the pump is in an activated position. In this manner, the pump is automatically activated, without further action by the user when the pump is moved to an activated position. The extended position of the pump is preferably an activated position.
The pump has a sealing position in which the pump substantially blocks, closes or seals the socket outlet and substantially prevents egress of air from the inflatable body through to socket outlet. The pump has a displaced position in which the pump is substantially displaced from the socket outlet where the pump allows ingress of air into the inflatable body.